In recent years the naval policy of China has been developed by Prince
Tsai Hsu. Admiral Sah Chen Ping, who commanded the Yangtze fleet which
operated against the republicans in October, 1911, and against the
pirates who attacked Yale College, at Changsha, in 1910, has visited
America, and entertained the American round-the-world fleet at Amoy
in 1908. He has a son in a western American college. General Li Yuen
Heng, one of the two greatest republican generals, was really trained
for the navy at Pei Yang and Chifu Colleges, and in Japan. Admirals
Jiu Cheng, Li Chun, of the Canton riots of April, 1911; Tan; Ching,
who entertained the American fleet at Amoy; Commander Hsu Chen Pang,
who was educated at Hartford, America; Admirals Liu and Hai Chun;
Admiral Chin Yao Huan and Commander Wu Chung Lin, both of whom visited
New York on the cruiser _Hai Chi_, are all well known. Commanders
Chen, Yang and Wong represented China when the cruiser _Fei Hung_ was
built at Camden, New Jersey, in 1912. When the republican troops took
the Shanghai arsenal it discouraged the navy, which could not secure
ammunition in time for effective work. The fleet then went over to the
red, white and blue sun flag, and later landed a republican army in
Shangtung province at Chifu to flank the imperial left wing operating
at Tsinan. The fleet also made a demonstration against Chin Wang Tao
on the gulf of Pechili, thus forcing the imperialists to hold several
divisions in the north to protect Peking. This enabled the republicans
to follow up the Nanking victory, drive General Chang out of Nganhwei
province, and made the Whei River instead of the Yangtze River the
republican front. If America undertakes with a Pacific fleet to back
up for all time the “non-partition of China” policy, the writer is
not a believer in a Chinese navy at present, outside of possibly one
dreadnought a year when the finances are revised. Of course a strong
revenue and police fleet for the rivers should be provided. Attention
should rather be given to China’s army, so that she may be able to do
her own police work as far as Russian or other intruders are concerned.
Having no oversea colonies, she really has no use for a navy at
present, excepting that one dreadnought a year would, if necessary,
lend a little more than moral support to America’s altruistic and
non-land-grabbing policy in the Far East.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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